Wednesday, December 11, 2013

Today, CTIA and
seven of the largest wireless companies in the U.S. expressed strong support
for the
Permanent Internet Tax Freedom Act. Collectively, CTIA and those
major carriers serve more than 95 percent of America’s 325 million wireless
subscribers. In a letter
to Chairman Bob Goodlatte, who co-sponsored the bipartisan bill with
Representative Anna Eshoo, the wireless industry leaders urged Congress to
enact the
Permanent Internet Tax Freedom Act before the current moratorium on
Internet access taxes expires on November 1, 2014. The proposed legislation would
make the current ban on Internet access taxes permanent.

As I discussed
in my October 15 Perspectives,
Internet access has remained essentially free from tax burdens
due to the Internet Tax Freedom Act of 1998,
which prohibited any state or political subdivision from imposing Internet
access taxes. Since
its enactment, the Act has contributed to nearly 15 years of economic growth and
Internet investment, development, and adoption.

By enacting the Internet Tax Freedom Act of 1998,
Congress recognized the importance of facilitating Internet access, and made it
more affordable for consumers to go online. Failure to ban the imposition of
taxes on Internet access will deter investment, slow innovation, and impose
unnecessary costs on consumers.

The Permanent Internet Tax Freedom Act
offers an opportunity for Congress to act in a bipartisan way on an important
matter for the benefit of all Americans. It is noteworthy that the largest
wireless carriers in the country signed the letter
sent to Congressman Goodlatte by CTIA. Although the large carriers who signed
the letter often disagree on other issues like spectrum management or auction
rules, AT&T, Verizon, Sprint Nextel, T-Mobile, U.S. Cellular, Cellcom and
Bluegrass Cellular expressed their united support for a permanent moratorium on
Internet access taxes.

The enactment of a permanent ban on Internet access taxes
provides one way to help ensure continued affordable access to this important
resource, as well as to promote U.S. leadership in the global economy and the
economic success of the digital marketplace.